Published by Communications and Public Affairs (519) 824-4120, Ext. 56982 or 53338
News Release
July 09, 2004
Psychology graduate program gets high marks
The University of Guelph’s industrial-organizational psychology PhD program has been ranked No. 2 in North America in a first-ever survey. Guelph was the only Canadian university among the Top 20 schools.
The survey, conducted by researchers at the University of Tulsa, examined 100 schools in North America that offer graduate programs in the field. The findings were published this week by the Society for Industrial-Organizational Psychology.
“We’re quite excited about the ranking, it’s very gratifying,” said psychology professor Steven Cronshaw. “Our program is very much a team effort by graduate students, faculty and Department of Psychology. Everyone shares responsibilities and contributed to this ranking.”
Industrial-organizational psychology focuses on behaviour in the workplace and its application to practical problems in human resource management and organizational behaviour. Most schools with such programs are in the United States, Cronshaw said. U of G has offered graduate training and education in the field since 1988; about 20 master’s and doctoral students are enrolled in the program.
The survey asked some 1,000 graduate students across North America a broad range of questions in 20 categories, including faculty support, quality of instruction, research and community work opportunities for students, program culture and class size.
Other schools listed in the Top 10 include Colorado State University, the University of Maryland, Columbia University and George Mason University.
The study’s lead author, psychology professor Kurt Kraiger, said in the report that the survey and rankings differ from those typically published in magazines such as Maclean’s or U.S. News and World Report. “Our goal was to develop a ranking system based on current graduate students’ evaluation of variables important to the quality of life and the quality of training from a student’s perspective.”
Contact:
Prof. Steven Cronshaw
Department of Psychology
(519) 824-4120, Ext. 52163
cronsshaw@psy.uoguelph.ca
For media questions, contact Communications and Public Affairs: Lori Bona Hunt, (519) 824-4120, Ext. 53338, or Rachelle Cooper, (519) 824-4120, Ext. 56982.
